Have you ever found yourself daydreaming? Maybe even during the sermon time each Sunday? You get lost in the wonder and rapture of that daydream, don’t you? Back in my day we would daydream about being a cowboy ala Roy Rogers or Gene Autry. The bad guys would be in jail. We would be hailed as the hero as we, strumming our guitar, rode off into the sunset! Or maybe it was Superman, or Mighty Mouse, or Spider Man! I’m not sure who kids today dream of becoming, and I am not sure I even want to ask!

Day dreaming isn’t just for kids. We adults find ourselves daydreaming about our dream house, or dream vacation, our dream job, and even winning the lottery. With the proliferation of lotteries and gambling, the huge lawsuit settlements, and highly exorbitant athlete’s salaries, don’t you dream sometimes about having enough money so as not having to worry about the bills or do to what you always desired? A big-named professional athlete told a South Jerseyan that he didn’t know what to do with all his money. His big SUV even has a little monitor on the inside of his gas cap cover.

Some of you remember the television show, “The Millionaire.” Mr. Abernathy, the millionaire’s personal secretary, would deliver a check for $1 million dollars, tax-free, to some person the millionaire choose. As a kid I would dream about Mr. Abernathy knocking on our front door, and what we could do with that money! Even today I find myself daydreaming…wondering what it would be like, if….

Our dreams are often mere fantasies played out in our imaginations. It is also true that our dreams and visions are the vehicle that drives us to do something important or great and is the focus of where we are headed and what we do in life. For Christians, life is lived in the future. We live today for our tomorrows. The past serves as a foundation and as a springboard into what is yet to be. For believers our eyes are fixed on Jesus and the ultimate future of heaven. If we are living in the past, then something is wrong with our vision. If the past is our focal point then we need to ask God to give us new dreams and new visions. We need transformational eyesight!

Dreams and visions have always been of part of the Bible’s story. We’ve just come through Christmas and looked at Joseph’s dream. Jacob at Beth-el had a dream that we have come to know as Jacob’s Ladder. Through the prophet Joel (2:28-29) God declared, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams; your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.” Peter declared Joel’s prophecy fulfilled on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came with signs and wonder and power.

The Bible declares, “Without a vision, the people perish.” I believe that to be very true. We need to understand here, that the vision being referred to is a vision of God. “Without a vision of God, the people perish.” It is God who is the author and source of our visions and dreams. It is a vision of what God wants for us, and what God will do in and through us to accomplish His purposes.

This weekend we celebrate the life and vision of one man who did have a dream. A man whose dreams catapulted him to heights of both fame and infamy. A man whose dream became the source of inspiration for millions of people and whose name will be recorded in the history books for decades to come. A man whose dream cost him his life. It is a dream that flows from the gospel of Jesus Christ, a dream that is inherent in the Kingdom of God and God’s Word. It is a powerful dream, a dream that the saved on earth can grab onto. Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream was that one day, people would look upon each other and not see black nor white, brown nor red nor yellow; but that we would see people for whom Jesus gave His life on Calvary’s cross that each would be redeemed through His blood.

My question for you is this? Do you have a dream? What is that dream? What dream is controlling your life? Can you name it? Do you have a dream for yourself, your family, and your church? Where did that dream come from? Does it come from God, or from too much pepperoni pizza? D L Moody once said, “A Christian sees more on his knees than a philosopher on his tip toes.” God’s visions and dreams often come to us as a promise—a promise that He will bring it to pass. There is also another kind of vision and that is a vision of direction. Such is Paul’s vision of the man from Macedonia. This is a vision of direction. Paul was in the process of planting churches in what is present day Turkey. He and his entourage had planned to go in one direction, but the Holy Spirit stopped them. It was then that God through His vision gave Paul the direction He wanted them to go. For Paul this vision was a call to action and it was a test of obedience.

Luke records, “We got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.” What was the source of this vision? It was from God and it came in response to a specific need—the need of the Macedonians to hear about Jesus. Paul and the gang planned to go in a certain direction, but the Holy Spirit stopped them. God gave Paul a new vision at Troas and that was the beginning of a new mission field to a whole new group of people in present day Europe.

Paul was already sharing the gospel and planting churches in Turkey and there were plenty of people in Turkey who still needed to hear about Jesus. God however through this vision called Paul to expand the breadth of the gospel and the work of God’s Kingdom.

As a congregation we are about the work of God’s Kingdom. In a way we are like Paul and his entourage busy being and doing Kingdom of God stuff. As a church we can look back and see God’s hand working and moving, growing us as His people. There were times we strained at the bit and grumbled and complained. At times God dragged us kicking and screaming into His will and vision. But through it all the name of Jesus was glorified.

What is your vision for your life? Is that vision from God? My vision was to be a high school history/Spanish teacher/librarian and coach baseball. God’s vision was for me to be a pastor in New Jersey, of all places. Who ever heard of New Jersey?

What is your vision for your family? How do you see your family developing, and growing? How do you relate to each other and functioning as a family?

What is your vision for our church here at SUMC? Do you even have one? Do you even care to have one?

Let me share briefly some of the highlights of my vision for SUMC.

I see us as a church where effective evangelism is happening, i.e. people are comfortable talking to others about what God has done in their lives; where folks are comfortable and proficient in leading another into a saving relationship with Jesus. I see us enthusiastically inviting, family, friends and neighbors to be a part of God’s activity at our church. Some 70% of people who come to church and/or Jesus do so because a friend, family member or neighbor invites them. I see us a church that reaches out to our community and to our world with the good news of Jesus.

I see us as a church where people are growing in their understanding, knowledge and experience of that relationship with Jesus; where people are moving up from being a believer, to a follower, to a disciple, to a leader. I see us as a church that offers a multitude of Bible studies and small groups where the majority of Sunday worshippers are also members of one of these groups.

I see SUMC as a church where dynamic worship is a normal and expected experience so that people look forward with great anticipation to being a part of a worship experience that will impact their lives; where individuals meet God in a life-changing way; a worship experience that cranks everyone’s tracking to live for Jesus each and everyday.

I see us as a praying church where prayer is the conduit by which God guides and directs our paths; where people for stated and specific prayer times and where people are “praying without ceasing” in their cars, waiting in lines, in the shower, walking to the speedline, shoveling snow or mowing the lawn!

I see us as a church reflecting the early church in our make-up of people. The gospel is for all people and we have to learn to put aside our differences for Jesus’ sake. That not only includes lingering prejudices and racism of all kinds, but worship styles as well where there really is J O Y—Jesus, Others, You. Unfortunately most of us are at J Y O and some are still at Y J O or Y O J! I see us as a Acts 2 church made up of a multiplicity of people groups—all loving Jesus!

I see our church as a focal point of a powerful, visionary youth ministry—that reaches teens who were born into our church and teens who have no clue what church is about. That is a very tall order and a BHAG—Big Hairy Audacious Goal, and impossible to accomplish without the Holy Spirit. Only God can do that one!

I see our church being a safe place for kids in a world that in increasingly child-unfriendly. Over the years this has always been a high priority and God has raised up leaders and workers to make it happen! The Nazis and the Communists understood the importance of teaching children early. In the Old Testament the Hebrews understood the critical nature of “training up a child in the way he should go.” (Prov. 22:6)

I see us as a church where people are actively serving Jesus, using our God-given gifts, talents, and passion to be Jesus to others.

I see SUMC as a church where loving fellowship under girds, surrounds, and permeates all we say, are and do; a church that truly loves one another.

I see SUMC as a church with a building large enough to handle our growing ministries, as they say, 24/7; where the majority of people tithe their incomes ( ie giving 10%) to God’s work; where we are truly “seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.”

I don’t have time to go on but as you can see I have a super-sized vision for SUMC….the excitement and the frustration of that vision is that I really believe it can become a reality in our church. But it won’t happen unless God intervenes. We won’t be the kind of church God wants us to be if we rely on our own resources and wisdom.

What is your dream for our church, your church? God is pouring out His Spirit on our church and when God does, “Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams and your young men will see visions.”

I believe God wants you to have a vision for your life, for your family and for our church. The Bible tells us, “No eye has seen, no ear heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.” If we allow God to work in us as He wills, then you ain’t seen nothing yet!

Thank You for Taking The Time to Read This Message.
May God Use These Words to Help You and Strengthen You.